Overview Of Wedding Correspondence

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Correspondence Guides
Overview Of Pieces
• Introduction

• Save The Date Notices

• Invitations

• Announcements

• Thank You Notes

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Overview Of Wedding Correspondence

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One of the many major steps involved in a wedding is managing its correspondence. This guide focuses on the actual pieces that you will mail to inform others about your wedding.

For a comprehensive, chronological guide to the entire process, see the BridalTrack Chronological Guide. It has detailed instructions for sending the correspondence pieces this guide summarizes.

This guide is broken into four section, each one giving a synopsis of the key elements of a piece of wedding correspondence. Those four items are:

1.   Save The Date Notices

2.   Invitations

     3.   Announcements

4.   Thank You Notes

Each item has its own purpose, target audience and time frame to be sent. This guide will provide you with all that information as well as some errors to avoid and tips for success. What this guide does not do is provide you with the whole story. It is just a summary of each item. For a guide from start to finish of the entire process, please see the BridalTrack Chronological Guide.

Also included in each section of this guide are certain "rules" (for lack of a better word) of etiquette that have become customary with each piece. BridalTrack wants you to keep in mind that the only true "rules" for a wedding are the ones you set. You do not ever have to take what any guide nor expert says as unbending laws carved in stone.

Always remember that your wedding is your wedding. Feel free to do anything you want, even if it goes against the "rules" you have read. Only you are the final judge of what is truly right or wrong when it comes to your wedding.

Save The Date Notices

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Purpose:
To give people who you will be inviting to your wedding enough time to make travel arrangements to attend it.
Timing:
4 to 6 months before the wedding, or 2 months prior to sending the actual wedding invitations.
Target:
People who will be invited to the wedding and who will need to make travel arrangements to attend it. This does not include those who will be invited by live in the area nearby.
Required:
No, Save The Date Notices are becoming a new custom, but are not required.
Pieces:
Anything you want. The Save The Date Notice is typically informal, which means it can and should reflect you and your fiance. Be creative. Use a postcard made of engagement snapshots. Possibly use some desktop publishing software to design and print the notices yourselves. Look through some of the attention-grabbing mail you get to spur your creativity. For example, maybe make it a refrigerator magnet, a coupon booklet or "Wanted" poster. Any idea you like is a good idea and is perfectly acceptable.
Do:
Do include the message "Invitation to follow" on the notices to let the recipient know that a formal invite will also be sent to them.

Do include the basics (i.e. wedding date, location, etc.) and let the actual invitation tell them all of the specifics.

Do update your contact list if any of your notices are returned because of a bad address. This insures that invitations will be sent to the correct address.

Do mention your wedding Web Site or reference an announcement in the local newspaper so that they may seek out more information if they want.

Don't:
Do not put registry information on your notices.

Do not include a response card.

Do not send them to everyone, just those who will need to make travel arrangements and accomodations to attend your wedding.

Do not use e-mail, use a physical piece and the postal system.

Do not saturate the piece with details. The invitation will include all the pertinent information needed.

Invitations

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Purpose:
To formally invite people to your wedding and to provide them with the information they need to attend.
Timing:
4 to 6 weeks prior to your wedding date
Target:
Everyone on your guest list who you would like to attend your wedding.
Required:
Yes. You are not required to invited everyone you know to your wedding, but to those people you are inviting you should send a formal invitation in the mail
Pieces:
Outer invitation envelope, inner invitation envelope, invitation card, invitation tissue, response envelope, response card, and any other items you wish to include (i.e. map to location, hotel listings, etc.)
Do:
Do test your pieces before you buy them. Make sure they physically, as well as visually, fit with one another.

Do consult the BridalTrack Invitation Guide for comprehensive instructions on assembling your invitations.

Do check your pieces as soon as you receive them from the printer. Make sure they are exactly what you ordered. The sooner errors are caught, the sooner they can be corrected.

Do use a guide such as the BridalTrack Addressing Guide to ensure you properly address both the inner and outer invitation envelopes.

Do use a reference number on response cards to identify them if they get returned blank or illegible.

Do get them hand canceled at the post office to prevent excessive wear and tear as they travel through the postal system.

Don't:
Do not forget postage. Waiting until the last minute with your invitations means you will be stuck with whatever stamps are in stock.

Do not assume your invitations will take one stamp to mail. Take a sample invitation packet to the post office to get it weighed for exact postage.

Do not use labels. Address all parts of the invitation by hand.

Announcements

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Purpose:
To inform those not attending about your wedding.
Timing:
The day before, the day of, or the day after your wedding.
Target:
Everyone who is not attending your wedding.
Required:
No, sending announcements to those not attending your wedding is not required.
Pieces:
Announcement and envelope.
Do:
Do word it similar to your invitations changing it to the past tense. Announcements will arrive after your wedding, so they should read like the wedding has occured.

Do check with both sets of families for guidance as to who should receive an announcement.

Do send them to professional colleagues to let them know about any name changes and to make the relationship you have with them seem more personal.

Do feel free to assign the responsibility of the announcements to the maid of honor or anyone else in the bridal party.

Don't:
Do not think of announcements as a gift solicitation. They are, in fact, a courtesy you are extending to people who were not in attendance at your wedding.

Do not send them too early. They are announcing a wedding that has already occured, so arrange for them to arrive after wedding date.

Thank You Notes

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Purpose:
To personally thank and show your appreciation for gifts.
Timing:
A maximum of 6 weeks after the gift was received. The sooner the better though.
Target:
Everyone who sent a gift for your wedding.
Required:
Yes. Lack of a prompt and personalized Thank You Note for a gift is a huge no-no.
Pieces:
Thank You Note and envelope.
Do:
Do make it as personal as possible. Be sure to specifically reference the gift, your appreciation for it and a use you have for it.

Do mention their attendance at your wedding. If they came thank them, if they did not, tell them you missed having them.

Do get your notes hand canceled at the post office for a better appearance upon arrival.

Don't:
Do not get caught short of Thank You Notes. You will receive more gifts than you expect, so make sure you have plenty of notes to use.

Do not use labels or type them. Write the address and the note itself by hand.

Do not forget vendors and everyone who assisted you at your wedding (i.e. caterers, minister, etc.).

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